


A Night to Remember

by RavensFan1989



Category: Ripper Street
Genre: M/M, OT3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-08
Updated: 2016-08-08
Packaged: 2018-08-07 11:19:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,294
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7712857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RavensFan1989/pseuds/RavensFan1989
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Bella's death, Drake is thinking about leaving Whitechapel. But he can't leave before he pays one last visit to Jackson...who has recently said something that the sergeant can't get off his mind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Night to Remember

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place shortly after "A Stronger Loving World" (2x06).
> 
> It was originally going to be a Jackson/Drake tale but, after some encouragement after jokingly talking about how funny it would be if Reid came home at some point, I decided to add Reid into the mixture too.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it! Constructive criticism is always welcome in the comments!

Bella’s death had been hard on Sergeant Drake. He had found in her the wife that he had been looking and hoping for for many years. And, despite what Bella had believed, the sergeant had truly loved her. Drake had thought about leaving H Division and everyone and everything that reminded him of her. Leaving was the only way to save his friends and colleagues from himself. He was bad luck.

But Drake did not leave right away, as he had planned on doing, and he blamed one particular American for his decision to stay for at least a few more nights. Captain Jackson was blissfully unaware that he had had anything to do with Drake’s resolution—as unaware as Inspector Reid was to the possibility of his sergeant leaving him soon. The two of them were going through many of their own problems at the same time so they couldn’t pay as much attention as either of them would have liked to Drake’s own worries.

Jackson’s primary concern was mending fences with Susan. A less stubborn man might have taken her latest rebuke as a sign that he should stop trying to fix what was unfixable. But Jackson was just stubborn enough to believe that there was still a chance for him to make everything right again. He sure as hell wasn’t going to be living with Reid for the rest of his life, nor did he plan on ever having to look for his own place; he was going to move back in with his wife.

Tonight, the captain had the inspector’s home all to himself. Fifteen minutes ago, he might have remembered what it was that Reid had said he was off to do. Now, all he cared to remember was that he still had half a bottle of whiskey to finish. Sitting by the cold hearth with no one’s company but his own was not how Jackson enjoyed spending any of his evenings but that was the situation that he currently found himself in.

…Until he heard a knock on the front door. Bottle in hand, Jackson got up to answer it. There were only a handful of people he could think of who might be on the other side of the door, and one of those faces was who he saw when he opened it. “Drake,” he greeted the sergeant, “Reid isn’t here right now.” He saw no reason why the man would be here to visit him.

There was still time to turn around and walk away. Jackson had just given him a way to leave without the captain ever having to know what his true purpose coming here had been. No. He wasn’t going to walk away from this. “I didn’t come here to see the inspector. I wanted to see you.”

Jackson did not fail to note Drake’s usage of ‘wanted.’ Drake hadn’t come here because he needed his expertise for some case that may have fallen into his lap in the past few hours. He was here of his own free will. It seemed that Jackson’s night had now taken a possibly interesting turn. The captain offered him a friendly smile. “Come on in then.” He opened the door wider and stepped to the side to give the sergeant room to enter, and, once he was inside, he shut the door behind him.

What had brought Drake out here tonight? Any police business he was apt to wish to share with Reid first instead. And, while Jackson and Drake got along fine at work, the former had never envisioned the latter coming to visit him for a social call. What kind of visit came between business and pleasure? Jackson was sure he was about to find out.

Whatever it was, Jackson did not fail to note that Drake seemed a little bit nervous. The captain knew one sure, albeit temporary, cure to all problems. “Drink?” he asked, holding up the bottle in his hand.

Drake nodded. “Sure.”

Jackson got two glasses and filled up each of them. He set the bottle down on the table and handed one of the glasses to the sergeant. Jackson resumed his seat near the hearth, and Drake sat down in the one across from him.

The captain took a sip of his drink, as Drake did the same with his own. They could wallow in small talk for a few minutes but Jackson’s curiosity was getting the best of him. “What brings you here tonight?” he asked as casually as possible, as if he weren’t all that interested in the sergeant’s answer.

Drake took a longer swallow of his whiskey and then cleared his throat. “Somethin’ you said the other day. I…It’s been on my mind of late.”

He searched the recesses of his memory for what it was that he might have said ‘the other day’ that would cause anyone to want to come visit him. He came up with nothing. “I’ve said a lotta things on a lotta days. I’m afraid you’re gonna have to be more specific than that, Drake.”

A faint, almost unnoticeable blush crept up to Drake’s cheeks. “The telegraph boys…You said…” He couldn’t look Jackson in the eyes any longer. He found an interesting spot on the floor near his feet to look at. “You said, ‘Don’t knock it ‘til you’ve tried it,’” he somehow managed to finish.

Jackson smiled, not sure exactly where this was going but enjoying it already. “I did say that.” And he had said it because he was no stranger to the company of men. “Why? You thinking about tryin’ it?” There was a hint of teasing in the captain’s voice. It was hard to picture the sergeant with a man but some might say the same thing about him.

Drake had come too far to back down now. “I am, Jackson.”

He had a million and one questions for Drake, but he didn’t ask any of them because there was no point in making the sergeant uncomfortable, considering he was about to embark on something illegal. What he did say was, “I can point you in the right direction.” Jackson stood up, intending to get a piece of paper so he could write down some addresses that would interest Drake. “There’s a—“

The sergeant cut him off. “I want to try it with you.”

Those words stopped Jackson dead in his tracks. Drake had actually said that, right? It took a lot to surprise the captain but Drake had accomplished just that. He didn’t want him to know that, though. He forced his feet to continue moving. He refilled his glass, downed his drink all in one go, and set the glass down on the table, before turning around to face the sergeant. “I know I’m charmin’ and irresistible beyond all measure,” he said, “but we work together, and things might get…complicated, even if it is only one night.”

Drake had set his glass down and stood up and made his way over to stand in front of Jackson half way through the man’s words. A crestfallen expression momentarily passed across his face. “Are you turnin’ me down?” he questioned.

Jackson didn’t waste any time in responding with a, “Hell no.” He grabbed Drake by the lapels of his suit jacket, bringing him in for a kiss.

The sergeant did not hesitate in returning it. He rested his hands on Jackson’s hips for balance. But his mind wasn’t yet completely drawn into what his body was already enjoying. Drake broke off the kiss as a fear—hopefully unfounded—entered into his mind. “The inspector isn’t returnin’ home anytime soon, is he?” Wouldn’t that be embarrassing…having Inspector Reid walk in on them like this.

Now Jackson wished he had been able to recall exactly when it was that Reid had said he might be back. Well, a harmless lie that would ease the sergeant’s fears was going to hurt anyone. “No, Benito, he ain’t gonna be back anytime soon.” Jackson helped Drake out of his jacket.

Drake began to unbutton the captain’s waistcoat. His hands were steadier than he thought they had any right to be. Perhaps it was because this wasn’t the first time he had thought about doing this with Jackson—that those thoughts had been in his mind even before that case; that case had only given him an easy way to act on them.

Jackson leaned in to continue their kiss, his own hands beginning to busy themselves with the sergeant’s waistcoat. The kiss moved from Drake’s lips to his jaw to his neck, eliciting a small moan out of the man. Jackson only backed off when he needed to take a quick breath, allowing them both the time to finish taking off their waistcoats on their own.

He then proceeded to grab onto Drake’s tie, using it to help twirl them around until he could push the sergeant up against the edge of the table. This time the kiss was more frenzied, and Jackson was not sure how or when they had both managed to get out of their shirts. He ran his hands along Drake’s bare chest, and he felt Drake’s hands clasp onto his ass, causing an involuntary chuckle to escape the captain, as he broke off the kiss to say, “Eager now are we, sergeant?”

“Is that a crime, captain?” he returned, giving Jackson a slight squeeze down there.

Jackson smiled. “Not at all.” Their lips locked together again. Jackson got busy unbuttoning and unzipping the sergeant’s trousers. One hand slipped down the front of them, and he could feel Drake momentarily flinch at his touch—to be expected, as being with a man was quite different in both large obvious ways and subtle smaller ones than being with a woman.

His hand didn’t linger there for long. It wandered back up, making a slow ascent up to Drake’s neck, which he cupped, pressing himself flush up against the sergeant. He backed off after a minute or two so he could more easily slip down the sergeant’s pants and long johns. Jackson took a moment to admire what he saw and then wrapped a hand around Drake’s member.

He began to slowly stroke it, barely noticing the sergeant fumbling with getting his trousers off. Drake eventually succeeded in his own task. It was he who initiated the next kiss, one hand reaching out to grab a hold of Jackson’s manhood. He had thought that it was going to feel wrong doing such an act, but it felt right—it felt like he had put off doing this for far too long.

Jackson was soon on his knees, and Drake knew what was coming next. The captain did not hesitate, making Drake wonder just how much experience the other man had with this. Jackson licked his head, and Drake’s hands found the table behind him to act as support for his already weak knees. Jackson took him into his mouth.

Who could say how many minutes passed in that fashion? Jackson and Drake were so caught up in each other that neither of them heard the front door open. Neither of them heard the creaking floorboards as someone treaded down the hallway. Neither of them noticed those footsteps stop as soon as they reached the entrance to the room they were in.

It was Drake who first spotted Reid standing there in the hallway. The inspector looked shocked, and the sergeant looked horrified. "Jack...Jackson," he somehow managed to stumble out. As soon as Jackson was back on his feet, Drake's hands went down to cover his private parts.

The captain could only look at him confused. The whiskey and throbbing down below were just enough to dull his wits to the point where he didn't know that Drake's actions pointed towards them not being alone anymore. "What is it?" he inquired. All Drake could manage was a small nod in the general direction of the hall.

Jackson turned around. What surprise he felt at seeing Reid standing there quickly dissipated. "You're back early," he simply stated, as if Reid had caught him and Drake doing no more than sharing a drink and smoke together.

Reid stood there, speechless for a moment longer, before he finally found his voice. "I am not back early," he replied, "I told you that I was only..." He trailed off as he realized how foolish it was that he was trying to explain himself to a temporary (and currently unclothed) guest in his home. His eyes moved to Drake. "I would like for you to leave, sergeant." He might have opened up his mind a little bit more when it came to the subject of love, but that didn't mean he wanted this happening in his home.

Drake was going to gather his clothes and do just that but a hand on his shoulder stopped him from moving too far. "He's gonna do no such thing," Jackson firmly said.

The inspector's eyes narrowed. "Might I remind you, Jackson, that you are a guest here. If you do not want him to leave alone, then you are free to accompany him."

Jackson laughed and felt Drake tense up, no doubt thinking that that laughter would only make their current situation even worse. “Your mouth’s sayin’ one thing, Reid, but your body another.” His eyes flicked downwards, drawing attention to the small, barely noticeable bulge beginning to grow there.

Reid followed the captain’s eyes. When he noticed it too, he took off his hat, unhurriedly, and used it to cover it up.

He knew he should say something about that but, before he could, it was Jackson who decided to break the silence. “Come on,” he said, “You can’t tell me that you don’t share Drake’s curiosity.” Only then did Jackson let his hand fall from Drake’s shoulder, allowing the sergeant to retreat a few steps backwards. He did not want to take part in whatever this was that was happening right now. “

There is a difference between being curious about it and partaking in it oneself.”

Jackson nodded his head. “True but what’s the harm in tryin’?” He moved uncomfortably close to Reid.

“There is no harm,” Reid had to admit. He wanted to stop the captain when he reached out a hand and placed it lightly on his cheek but he didn’t. As a matter of fact, he didn’t even wait for Jackson to take the initiative. Reid leaned in first, his lips barely brushing against the other man’s, until Jackson pressed back with more force.

In the meantime, Drake could not believe what he was seeing. His immediate reaction was to shun the thought of the inspector being invited to join them. But, as he stood there watching the two of them kiss, the ache and desire in him only grew stronger. He did not know what tomorrow’s thoughts might bring, but he only cared about this moment. He began to slowly stroke himself to relieve some of the pressure he felt, letting Jackson take care of Reid on his own but knowing it would only be a matter of time before he was remembered and joined the two of them.

Jackson wasted no time in stripping the inspector of his clothes, and Reid helped him along the way. Not unlike Drake, this had been something that had been lingering in the back of the inspector's mind for a while now. The captain epitomized almost everything about Whitechapel that Reid wished to change and, yet, Reid couldn't help but be curious about the lifestyles such people like Jackson led.

The captain took a step back from him. Reid had to restrain himself from taking a step forward. “You two, sit,” Jackson commanded them, “I’ll be right back.”

Reid was the first to do as instructed, taking a seat on the sofa. Drake soon followed suit, keeping a comfortable distance between them. The sergeant nodded his head in the other man’s direction. “Inspector,” he greeted him, acknowledging his presence for the first time.

“Sergeant,” he returned the greeting. He could sense Drake’s unease and, of course, was not surprised by it. “I hope that I have not disturbed your plans for this evening too considerably. I am sorry if I have. It was not my intent to do so.”

“There is nothin’ to apologize for,” Drake replied. “I…” _Don’t mind you joining us? Am very glad you came home when you did?_ Nothing seemed right to say. So, instead, the sergeant placed one slightly trembling hand on the inspector’s knee. Reason dictated that he was expected to enjoy Reid’s company as much as Jackson was.

He was spared, though, from doing more than that by Jackson’s return. He held a glass bottle in his hand. He smirked at the sight that greeted his eyes. “I’m glad to see you two are playin’ nice with each other.” Jackson had not known exactly how Drake was going to react when he invited Reid to join them. To see that he seemed to be making an attempt at accepting it was good enough for the captain.

Jackson strolled over to the sofa and had just enough room to sit himself in the middle. This felt…good. Better than the countless furtive encounters he had had with men who were practically strangers to him. He wasn’t going to count on something like this happening again between the three of them, however, so he would relish every last second of tonight.

Drake nodded towards the bottle in his hand. “What is that?”

“Olive oil,” Jackson answered.

It was Reid this time who spoke up.  “For?”

Jackson only raised his eyebrows, knowing it would click for Reid sooner than for Drake.

The inspector’s brow furrowed until the answer came to him. “Oh,” he uttered, barely audible.

The captain glanced over at Drake, who was still pondering why Jackson had felt the need to bring the olive oil out of the kitchen. Jackson was not going to waste time explaining it to him. Instead, he and Reid would demonstrate what it was for.

Jackson opened the bottle. He poured some of the oil onto his hand and wrapped it around Reid’s member. The inspector sank back into the sofa, and Drake watched silently as it began to slowly dawn on him what they were going to do.

When he was as slick as he was going to get, Jackson positioned himself over Reid, one knee on the side of each leg. It had been a while since he had done this but he couldn’t help but feel like this was a special occasion that warranted him doing some things that he had not done in a while. He felt Reid rest his hands on his hips. He slowly eased downwards, biting down on his lip to fight against the attendant initial pain. Once it passed, he moved down more and began to relax as the discomfort quickly turned into pleasure. Jackson rested his hands against the top of the sofa for further support.

He smiled down at Reid, before leaning in for a kiss. Reid began to buck his hips up and down as much as what little space he had allowed him to do. Minutes passed before the captain broke off the kiss so he could turn his head to look at Drake. “I haven’t forgotten about you, Benito,” he said, “Come here.” He patted the spot on the sofa recently vacated by him.

Drake obeyed without a second thought. He got onto his knees so he was at eye level with the captain. It was his turn to enjoy Jackson’s company. He kept Jackson pointed in his direction by placing a hand on his cheek and placing a fervid kiss on his lips. Reid enclosed a hand around Jackson’s manhood. He stroked him in time with his thrusts. His eyes were fixed on the two men above him.

Many minutes passed that way. And then Reid gave one last push, accompanied by a moan of relief, before he spilled himself into Jackson. The inspector closed his eyes, barely noticing when the captain disengaged himself from him. When he opened them again, he saw that Drake had seated himself on the sofa and Jackson was down on his knees in front of him doing exactly what he had been doing when Reid had first arrived home.

It was not long before Drake reached his own end. Jackson swallowed without hesitation. He did some cleanup duty with his tongue before backing away and settling himself back onto the sofa. This evening had gone from one of no note to one that Jackson was not likely ever going to forget. He wondered, though, if Drake and Reid were going to feel the same way about it come tomorrow morning.

Jackson looked between Drake and Reid. “I hope I successfully satisfied your curiosity.”…Or not because Jackson would be lying to himself if he said he wouldn’t mind something like this happening again in the future.

The best that Drake could manage was a nod. Reid managed to do better. “Not quite,” he said.

Before Jackson could ask what he meant by that, the inspector had gotten down onto the ground in front of him. One hand held onto the base of his member. “You don’t have to, Reid,” Jackson stated.

“I want to,” was the inspector’s reply. He had seen Jackson do this to Drake. All he had to do was mimic him. Reid took him into his mouth. He moved up and down slowly at first, only increasing his speed when he felt comfortable enough to do so.

Jackson’s eyes remained focused on Reid. He didn’t notice when Drake got up to head to the bathroom so he could clean himself up. Jackson’s fingers dug into the inspector’s hair. He found his end rapidly approaching. “Reid, I…I’m gonna…” Jackson tried to warn him.

Reid did not need to be told that. He was not going to back away now; he was not going to leave his education incomplete. He felt the vibrations of Jackson’s shudder and tasted something both salty and sweet. He swallowed. Reid looked up at Jackson with a smile. “Now I am satisfied,” he told the captain.

Jackson couldn’t help but chuckle. “Always the eager student,” he said.

It was at that moment that Drake came back into the room. He began to gather up his clothes and put them back on, while Reid went to take his turn in the bathroom. All Jackson could think about was how much he needed a smoke right now. He would have gotten up to get one but, once Drake was fully clothed, the sergeant spoke up. “I’m leavin.’”

Because of the gravity with which he said those two simple words, Jackson knew Drake meant more than that he was leaving Reid’s home to go back to his own. The captain had a thing or two to say about that…but Drake had more to say himself first. “Leastways I think I am. There’s nothin’ for me here…not anymore.”

Jackson stood up. “Goddamnit, Drake,” he said, “You have people here who care about you. You do good work here. You ain’t—“

Drake cut him off. “Don’t tell Reid.” He stepped out into the hallway, turning back towards Jackson so he could say, “Thank you for…for everything.” He offered the other man a small smile before making his way out of the inspector’s home…and quite possibly out of Jackson’s and Reid’s lives forever.

Instead of a smoke, Jackson went for a shot of whiskey. Why had Drake told him that? Should he tell Reid? No, he couldn’t do that. It wasn’t up to him or Reid to decide what was best for the sergeant; only Drake could decide that for himself. Jackson downed one more shot. As he was finishing it up, Reid came back wearing a robe and, Jackson guessed, nothing else. Propriety was no longer needed between the two of them for as long as Jackson remained living with him.

Reid was a detective; he could tell that the temperature in the room seemed to have chilled since he had left it. “Is everything all right?” he inquired. He was not surprised to see that Drake had slipped out while had been busy. But whatever words he had exchanged with Jackson before leaving…Well, they seemed to have had a negative effect on the captain.

“Everything’s fine,” he replied, hoping it sounded more truthful than it actually was. “’Night, Reid.” He made a move to get past the inspector, planning to clean up a bit himself before heading to his designated temporary bed.

Reid, though, halted his progress by grabbing onto his hand. “My bed…is much more comfortable.”

It took Jackson a second to process his words. It appeared that his pupil wanted another lesson tonight. It could be just the thing Jackson needed to forget about the fact that H Division may well find itself short a sergeant soon.

“Like I said,” he rejoined with a smile, “Always the eager student.” He pulled Reid in for a long kiss and then led him upstairs.

Jackson went to bed that night with his arms draped over Reid. He and Reid shared a dreamless sleep. Drake wasn’t so lucky. He went to sleep alone. He dreamed of Bella—he dreamed of her death, only her face kept on turning into Rose’s. He dreamed of fates even worse that might await Reid and Jackson too, along with everyone else he cared for, if he remained in Whitechapel.

He had to leave. He _would_ leave.


End file.
